To Austin, With Love
by Ninazadzia
Summary: The summer before her freshman year of college, Glimmer gets into a long distance relationship. At school she befriends Cato, a promiscuous football player with a big heart. T for sex and alcohol. Glimmer/Marvel, Glimmer/Cato, slight Cato/Clove.
1. You're In Deep

**Disclaimer: This fic was born out of my annoyance for the way this fandom treats Glimmer's character. What little we know about her in the book is that she's beautiful, and that in the movie she has an (**_**implied,**_** mind you) "fling" with Cato. That's it. And for some reason, authors take that and will spin Glimmer into a boyfriend-stealing, incredibly vile, and often promiscuous plot device.**

**This Glimmer is going to be nothing like that.**

* * *

**To Austin, With Love**

By Ninazadzia

_Diary—_

_ I'm going to be incredibly candid with you. I mean, you're an inanimate object, so it's not like you can judge me. But still. What I'm about to say is incredibly cocky out of context, so please bare with me._

_ Apparently I'm incredibly attractive, at least to members of the opposite sex. I don't know exactly when it happened—all I know is that one minute I'm dating the same nice, decent-looking-but-not-jaw-dropping guys that I usually go for. And then the second Peter and I break-up, I'm approached by a handful of guys that I never thought I'd have a chance with._

_ I'm never the prettiest girl in the room, and I'm not even the pretty friend. That was always Cashmere. Or at least it was—I guess in between brand new D-cups (thanks to birth control), the blonde hair dye, and the fake tan, something changed. I'm gorgeous now. At least according to Gloss Pearson, Brutus Klaine, Seneca Crane, Finnick Odair, and Thresh Okeniyi._

_ I like this attention, I'm not going to say that I don't—but I don't know how to deal with it. I'm not a flirt, I don't even think I'm beautiful. Pretty, yeah, but only after I slick on ten layers of makeup and put in my contact lenses. And now that I'm in college, and now that I'm around people that haven't known me for years on end . . . well, I feel like I don't live up to the image that people have of me in their heads._

_ It's not like the guys at school will have a chance with me, anyway. Marvel and I finally decided to bite the bullet. Fuck the fact that we're going to school over a thousand miles apart._

_I've been in love with him since I was sixteen. And we never had a chance in high school—not when we only saw each other during our summers in Martha's Vineyard, and when we lived two hundred miles away during the school year, and were tripled varsity athletes on completely different schedules. It would've never worked. I wasn't willing to do long distance in high school._

_But Marvel is everything I'm not. He's even-tempered. He's gentle. He's relaxed. And God knows that a girl like me needs someone like that. But most importantly, Marvel is my first love. I can't exactly explain why . . . but I feel something for him that I've never felt for anyone before._

_So when he asked me to be his girlfriend, I couldn't say no. When he told me he loved me, I breathed it back. And when we slept together for the first time, I felt the most alive that I had in a very, very long time._

_I don't know if it will last—but I'll be damned if I don't try. I'm in too deep._

* * *

She always hated the cold. She especially hated New York winters. The grayness was enough to drive anyone out of their mind. So when she committed to study at the University of Texas at Austin, Glimmer knew that it would be her godsend. That school offered her so much more to her than its pleasant weather.

Of all four hundred graduates in the class of 2018, only one chose Austin. Her.

So with that thought in mind, she woke up her first morning of class, looked in the mirror, and told herself, _this is it. This is the day that you can be _you.

She hated Harrison, the town she grew up in. She hated Westchester and the suburbs and all of the pressure that came with it. She kept her head down in high school, studied what she needed to study, and pursued her dream of becoming a Division I soccer player.

The soccer part didn't work out. She knew she should've been terrified by it; soccer was her identity in high school, and without it, she was insignificant. But for the first time, Glimmer Rambin had the chance to turn a new leaf. She didn't have to try and break out of the "goody-goody" Varsity soccer mold she'd been forced into in high school. She could finally be the woman she wanted to be.

So she held her head high, and strut all the way to her first class. English 101 was capped at fifteen students, so it was her smallest course of the day. She surveyed the room; there were more guys than girls. _Maybe this is my chance to make some good guy friends._ She never had any in high school.

Her teacher was a lanky, timid southerner. He stumbled through introductions for the first five minutes of class. His monologue didn't have much direction—Glimmer was in the process of writing him off as a dud teacher, when someone stumbled through the doorframe.

"Is this English 101?"

She turned to look at him—a tall, tanned guy with scruffy blonde hair. He must've been an athlete. She could see the muscles protruding through his t-shirt.

_He looks like Jamie Bell, _she mused. He was an actor in one of her favorite movies.

"Ahh, yes," Professor Clinton replied. "Why don't you take a seat? We were just about to start introductions." Jamie Bell sauntered to his seat, and Clinton's eyes nervously flit around the room. "Would anyone, err, like to start? We'll just be going through names, hometowns, why you picked Austin, what you hope to get out of this class…?

His words hung in the air. The awkwardness in the room was almost tangible, and it made Glimmer want to jump out of her skin.

_Oh, to hell with out. I'll be the bold one._

"I'll start," she says. She smoothes out the folds in her dress, and walks to the front of the room. Public speaking never scared her. If anything, she felt more comfortable with an audience than without one. "I'm Glimmer. I'm from Westchester New York, but hate admitting that with a burning passion. I chose Austin because I wanted to get as far away from the East Coast as possible. And as far as what I want to get out of this class . . ." she glanced over to Professor Clinton, "I promise, I'm not saying this to butter you up. I want to be a novelist one day—I'm actually an English major. I really hope to find my voice in this class, and I guess," she laughed at the words that were about to come out of her mouth, "have fun in the process."

She shot Professor Clinton and a smile and an awkward thumbs up, and then made her way back to her seat. Her classmates looked back at her, in . . . surprise? Shock? Amusement? Whatever it was, she didn't care.

They went down the line. No one spoke nearly as much as she did, at least not until they reached Jamie Bell. He walked up to front of the room; his voice was low and gravelly.

"My name is Cato. I'm from Tampa, Florida. I'm here to play football. And I'm just going to be honest, I'm taking this class to fulfill a requirement," he said sheepishly, "I'm hoping I'll get a good grade, and see where it goes from there." And with that, he nodded his head and went back to his seat.

_Jesus, _Glimmer thought, _What an asshole._

* * *

_**. . . You can't sleep, you can't eat**_

_**There's no doubt, you're in deep**_

_**Your throat is tight, you can't breathe**_

_**Another kiss is all you need . . .**_

* * *

**A/N: As any long time reader of mine can attest: I do **_**not **_**ship Glato. I never have. But this idea hit me like a train, and I couldn't let it go to waste.**

**I haven't decided yet on the endgame pairing, and I'm going to explore her relationship with both Marvel and Cato extensively over the course of this fanfic. And, yes, Clove will be a character, but in a very limited capacity.**

**Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you thought :D **

**xx Nina**


	2. A Silent Devotion

**To Austin, With Love**

By Ninazadzia

* * *

… _**Light reflects from your shadow**_

_**It is more than I thought could exist**_

_**You move through the room**_

_**Like breathing was easy**_

_**If someone believed me …**_

* * *

She was texting Marvel when he approached her.

"Hey, I didn't get the chance to catch you name—I'm Cato." He stuck out his hand, and she shook it.

_Oh, sweetheart. You don't know what you're walking into._

"Hi! I'm Glimmer, it's nice to meet you." She shook it, and a little too enthusiastically—she was like that about most things. "It's nice to meet you. Where'd you say you were from again?"

"Tampa."

"Oh, cool—my grandparents are from Sarasota, I'm down there all the time."

"Where are you from?"

"Westchester, just outside of the City—I feel infinitely uncool whenever I admit that," she laughed. "We're with so many Texas kids, and I can practically _feel _the judgment whenever I say that."

He smiled. "You like it here so far?"

"Yeah! I love it. Are you living on or off-campus?"

"I'm on campus with the rest of the athletes. How about you?"

She pointed over her shoulder. "I'm actually in that dorm right there. You said you play football, right?"

"Yeah."

"Nice! What position?"

"Quarterback." _Psch. Figures._ "I've been here since May for preseason."

And so ensued a five-minute conversation about sports, moving, and the Austin heat. And all the while, Glimmer had to suppress an eye roll. This wasn't the first time she'd been approached, and she was sure it wouldn't be the last. She'd already had to turn down two overeager boys in the last weekend; she learned that a member of the opposite sex didn't text you asking to "hang out" over the weekend unless they were expecting a sexual favor.

"It's cool with you that I have a boyfriend, right?" she'd told both of them. And no, it wasn't cool. "I'm sorry, you're really hot and I'm just uncontrollable when I'm drunk," one of them had said. "I don't think it's a good idea for us to hang out." The other wasn't quite so blunt—he said everything was fine, told her to meet up with him at a frat party, and she never wound up seeing him there.

She didn't blame them. She was just disappointed that—disappointed that that was the way it had to go.

Cato asked for her number. She contemplated telling him, "Before I give this to you, I just want you to know that I have a boyfriend," but decided against it. She didn't want to seem too self-confident, and they were walking with a few of their other classmates.

So instead, she took out her phone. "Yeah, sure," she told him. "Give me yours and I'll text my name or some shit."

He starting typing in his information. "Awesome. Sig Ep is having something tonight and I'm going with a few friends, you should come with—do you want to grab lunch right now? I'm heading to the dining hall."

She smiled. _I'm digging the confidence, my friend. _"Thanks, but I'm actually meeting a friend for lunch. Have fun though."

He nodded. "Of course. I'll see you around, Glimmer."

"Yeah, definitely."

* * *

She texted Marvel immediately thereafter.

_I miss you._

The reply was instantaneous.

_I miss you moreeeeeee._

It had been three days since they'd last seen each other. They had six weeks left, until she went to visit him at Boston College.

_Can't wait to see you over fall break._

Another instantaneous reply.

_I'm counting down the days._

* * *

She'd had a crush on Marvel since she was thirteen.

Cashmere—her childhood best friend _and _family friend—was his original choice. She didn't blame him; Cashmere had always been the most beautiful girl in the room, and Glimmer was an ugly duckling back then. Thankfully that changed, and it only took two more summers for them to become the item she'd always wanted them to be.

It was the only time she'd ever fallen in love. And when Glimmer fell in love, she fell in love _hard. _Her and Marvel had what epic love stories were made of. He was the genius, socially awkward sweetheart. He was a man of few words, but he made them count—Glimmer, on the other hand, had chronic foot-in-mouth syndrome. And she was smart too, but her gifts came with her work ethic, and her ability to talk to anyone.

They were both goofballs. They had that "spark." And even though it was over a thousand miles away, it was worth it.

On their last night together, as they lay in bed and drifted to sleep, Marvel had whispered in her ear, "You should move to Boston."

They'd only been together for two months. Even if the timeline of their overall relationship had gone much longer than that, this conversation was happening too soon.

"Are we really having this conversation right now?" she said.

He stroked her hair. "If you want to."

"Of course I do. I'm just surprised, that's all."

"Well," Marvel yawned, and then plastered a smirk across his face. "I like to be full of surprises."

She laughed. "You've succeeded, believe me. I was _shocked_ when you asked me to be your girlfriend." She sighed, and snaked her arm across his torso. "I mean, it's a conversation worth having—it's good if we're on the same page."

"Yeah."

"Yeah." She looked up, into the depths of his pale blue eyes. "Marvel, I could see this being a long term thing. I have not expectations, I want you to know that . . . but I wouldn't be opposed to the idea of transferring. Only after some time, though, we need to see if we're really serious about each other . . . and before I did, we would need to have a really, _really _serious conversation."

"Yeah," he says quietly.

"And I don't think that's a conversation any couple should have two months in." She smiled, kissed him on the lips, and then nestled her head into his shoulder. "So we should leave it at that."

He chuckled. "Yeah, of course." And with that, they went to sleep.

* * *

…_**And with words unspoken**_

_**A silent devotion**_

_**I know you know what I mean**_

_**And the end is unknown**_

_**But I think I'm ready**_

_**As long as you're with me…**_

* * *

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading this chapter! What'd you think of Glimmer and Cato's characterizations? How about Marvel's? Let me know :D**

**Song lyrics are from "Angels" by the xx.**

**xx Nina**


	3. My Heartbeat Sound

**To Austin, With Love**

By Ninazadzia

* * *

"_Are you going out tonight?"_

She glanced the message over, and laughed when she saw who it was from.

"Hey, Lyme." Glimmer handed her phone to Lyme, her roommate.

Lyme Christie was an easygoing, bubbly girl from Northern California. She smoked a lot of weed and spent more time watching Netflix than she did studying, but she was so naturally smart that her grades were fine regardless. She was also one of Glimmer's best friends at school.

"Is this from the Quarterback?" she asked with a smirk.  
"Yeah. He doesn't know that I have a boyfriend."

"Glimmer!"

"What? I haven't figured out how to work that detail into casual conversation yet." She laughed. "I feel like I shouldn't go. He seems like cocky little bitch."

"Then say no. But if he's in your English class, it's not exactly like you can avoid him."

"Yeah." She read over the message another time.

_Maybe there's more to him than you know. You shouldn't write him off so easily._

"Oh, fuck it," she said. "I'll just tell him. If he's actually a dick, I'll find that out right now."

She wrote the reply without giving it much thought. "_I might, hbu?"_

An instant reply. "_Yeah. You've gotta come out."_

_Hmm, _she thought. _A little pushy, but okay._

"_Lol I'll see if I'm up for it."_

He waited a minute.

"_Well at least stop by and pregame in Devlin with me."_

She showed Lyme the text. She laughed.

"Drop the bomb, sister."

"Right." She composed the text, read it over twice, and sent it off.

"_I'd be down for that, but you should probably know first that I have a boyfriend."_

His response arrived a minute or two later.

"_Okay. So we can't be friends"_

_Ugh._ Glimmer rolled her eyes. _He's just like all of the others._

"_Is that a question? Because you seem like a cool guy and I'd want us to be friends."_

He replied, _"Sorry forgot the punctuation."_

And then, _"And I'm actually gay."_

"_For real?"_

"_No hahah."_

"_I was gonna say, my gaydar is dead on usually. Yeah, we should be friends."_

"_Yeah stop by Devlin 909. Bring some friends that are girls."_

"_Alright, I'll be there soon."_

She closed her phone, and snickered. "Well?" Lyme asked.

"He seems alright, actually."

If only she knew what she was getting herself into.

* * *

"So what's your boyfriend's name?" Cato asked.

They were cooped up in Sigma Epsilon's basement, with close to eighty other people. Spending a late August night, in Texas, and with eighty other people in the same room meant Glimmer had_ long_ sweat through her deodorant. Most of the girls were wearing high waisted shorts and crop tops, including Glimmer. It was way too hot to wear anything else.

"Marvel."

He laughed. "What kind of a name is that? What, did his parents name him after their countertops?"

"Not Marble, you ditz, _Marvel._" She punched his shoulder.

"So, where does Marvel go to school?"

"Oh, you're going to judge me _so _hard for this."

"Is he far from here?"

"He goes to Boston College."

Cato laughed. "Fuck. That sucks for you guys. And lemme guess—you're exclusive, right?"

"Oh, yep. Exclusive as we can get."

"Have you guys been together for a while?"

She ran her finger along the rim of her beer bottle. "Err. Well, it's kind of a long story…"

He glanced her over, thoroughly amused. "What? Has it been less than a year?"

"…More like two months?"

He searched her expression, and then burst out laughing. "So let me get this straight—you're in a _long distance relationship_ with some guy that you've only known for _two months?"_

"You're such a dick! No, it's a lot more complicated then that—ugh, if you heard the whole story, it would make a lot more sense to you."

He nodded. "Alright, then." He took her hand, lead them to a quieter area of the room, and leaned up against the wall. "Start talking. Consider me thoroughly interested."

"Oh, it's probably only interesting to me—"

"No, go ahead." He smirked. "I want to hear this epic love story."

She rolled her eyes. "Well. Okay."

* * *

She figured Cato had the attention span of a squirrel, so she condensed it as much as she could. It didn't do her and Marvel justice, of course, because there was so much history to their relationship that no one could really fully understand it.

Cashmere was one of the few people who'd been around for the saga of "Marvel and Glimmer" since the very beginning. She watched their trials and tribulations, and more importantly, she'd grown up with "ugly" Glimmer. She'd grown up with the buck-toothed, uni-browed, unfriendly preteen. Glimmer had always been awkward, and while it that phase boiled down to a few cute quirks in adulthood, preteen Glimmer was the antithesis of cool.

Her and Marvel were on that same platform of "awkward." And as they grew up, and spent their summers at the same day camp in Martha's Vineyard, they grew together. It was unintentional, at first—they'd be thrown in the same team-building groups, and they'd talk on occasion. At first it was nothing more than a strictly physical crush; as they got older, it became a fascination with Marvel himself.

Glimmer considered herself a very perceptive person. She got an A in AP Psych, and she usually understood other people easily. Handling different personality types came naturally to her. But there was something about Marvel's quiet, introverted persona that she never understood. She could never tell what was going through his mind—and most importantly, she could never tell what he felt about _her._

His feelings were a complete mystery, until the summer before their junior year, when he kissed her, out of the blue. And she spent three days on cloud nine, until he made the insinuation that he wanted something long distance.

_Oh, God no,_ she'd thought. _I refuse. You live in Massachusetts, and I'm in New York. That's not happening._

He didn't take that news well. In fact, they didn't talk for close to a year and a half. He didn't get the job working at their old summer camp that following summer, so she spent her time in Martha's Vineyard with her then boyfriend, Peter, and Cashmere, and her other friends from high school.

And then—without any warning—he came back to the Vineyard, for the summer before their freshman year of college. He counseled at the same camp she was at. And it was like no time had passed, and they picked up right where they left off.

It all came to a climax one night, when they were kissing on the couch of his parent's apartment. He pulled away, and looked her in the eye. And there was something there that was . . . unfamiliar.

"What is it?" she asked.

He'd opened his mouth as if to say something, and then stopped and said, "It's nothing."

"No, seriously." She ran her finger along his jawline. "Tell me."

"It's just . . ." He looked down, and then looked back up, and right into her eyes. "I love you."

She heard the words, but it took a minute for them to register.

_This isn't Marvel Quaid. He's many things, but "straightforward" isn't one of them._

Her pulled her back into him, and they kissed for a bit, but she quickly pulled away. "Wait, wait, hold up." She brought a finger to his lips. "You love me?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied.

"You _love _me?"

"_Yeah,"_ he said, more emphatically.

She shook her head. "Uh-uh, no you don't. You're just saying that because you're drunk."

He rolled his eyes. "Alcohol is truth serum. Glimmer—_I love you."_

It was too good to be true, and she knew it. But there they were, lying in bed, half naked, with the words "I love you" coming out of Marvel Quaid's mouth.

So she smashed his lips against his. And he reciprocated, and their mouths danced together for a minute, before she pulled away and said, "I've been in love with you for two years, Marvel."

He chuckled. "Okay, that was the reaction I wanted."

And then he pulled her back in. Except they didn't stop at kissing. No, that wound up being the first night they had sex. It was something she'd fantasized about for a long time, so the act itself felt surreal.

It was easily the best sex she'd ever had. But more importantly, it was with _him._

As they lay in bed afterwards, one thought resonated through Glimmer's mind. _Don't fuck this up. Don't fuck this up. Don't you _dare _fuck this up, Glimmer._

_The distance is going to suck, but he's worth it._

* * *

…_**When I met you in the summer**_

_**To my heartbeat sound**_

_**We fell in love**_

_**As the leaves turned brown…**_

* * *

**A/N: GREETINGS FROM MY CAVE, Y'ALL.**

**I've been in the library for EASILY 45 hours this week (#finals) so editing and uploading this was a much-needed study break. Thank y'all so, SO much for reading this chapter. I appreciate each and every one of you, and I'm one billion percent open to chapter/character requests.**

**Lyrics are from Calvin Harris' "Summer."**

**xx Nina**


	4. Lonely Soul

**To Austin, With Love**

By Ninazadzia

* * *

She could tell that Cato didn't completely buy their love story, but she didn't care. She was happy, and Cato seemed like he wasn't going to try anything skeevy, so what did it matter? He didn't have to get it, he just had to respect it. If he could do that, then they could be friends.

They talked all throughout the first week; mostly about what they were up to when they went to different parties, partially about their English homework. That next weekend, her and Cato ran into each other at a bar. A huge grin stretched across his face, as if seeing her was the best surprise he'd gotten all night.

"_Glimmer! _My girl!" He pulled her aside, and took her to the bar. "Here, lemme buy you a drink! You must get sick of paying for these things yourself."

"Really? Aw thanks, that's so nice of you—how's your night going?"

"Me? Oh, I'm great! I'm fucked up! How about you?" He laughed. "You seem _super_ sober right now."

She shrugged. "It's fine. You're buying me something, and I have stuff at home." The bartender handed Cato his beer; he paid him, and then thrust it in Glimmer's hand. They chat at the bar for all of five minutes, before agreeing that it was too loud and too crowded.

"My dorm is a block away," Glimmer shouted over the music. "We can talk there. Plus, I have beer."

"You said that earlier—sounds sick!"

So Glimmer chugged what was left of her whiskey sour, and they exited the bar. Harmless small talk ensued; it turned out Cato had football practice at seven that next morning, but that wasn't going to stop him from going out and staying up late. "I'm invincible!" he shouted into the night. He turned to Glimmer. "Nothing's gonna stop me from getting trashed."

"I admire that. I don't know many people that can juggle D1 athletics and going out—half the reason I didn't play soccer here is because I knew I wouldn't be able to party as much."

"For real?"

She laughed. "No, not for real—I like partying, but it's not_ that_ important to me."

"No, no. I mean—you almost played soccer here?" He laughed. "Shit! You must've been a fucking star in high school."

"Well, I didn't make the team. And you're one to talk, Mr. Quarterback."

"Tch, yeah. Fifth string." They walked up a flight of stairs, and turned the corner. "Holy shit, this dorm is so nice!"

"I know, it's brand new. Do you wanna hang on the balcony? We can't drink in the common rooms, if we get caught we're fucked."

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Lady."

Glimmer rolled her eyes. She pulled up two chairs together, and motioned for Cato to sit in one. "Hang tight for a minute, I'll be right back."

She came back, and then they started talking. And it didn't stop. Cato decided at around three-thirty that if he went to bed, he wasn't going to be able to get back up. So they wound up pulling an all-nighter. The first hour consisted of Cato making fun of Glimmer—mostly for being "such a fucking nerd," as he put it, but partially for her relationship choices. And then the conversation turned to his manwhorish capacities.

"I've never had a girlfriend," he explained. "Like, literally, I've only ever done hooking up. I haven't even been on a real date before."

She raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? I'm sure an attractive guy like you could get a date."

He laughed. "Nah, not really. It's just . . . God." He sighed. He looked over at her, and waited for a minute before talking. "Glimmer," he said, tipping his beer in her direction. "I'm going to be really honest with you right now, okay?"

"Okay. I mean, you've never _not _been honest with me, but sure."

She had an idea of what he was going to say before the words came out of his mouth. "Thing is, at this school, there are two types of girls; four-through-sevens, and taken tens. _You, _for example, are a taken ten." Glimmer's cheeks flushed, but Cato didn't appear to notice. "I don't want to date anyone right now, and I absolutely had to, it would have to be a ten. I'm not going to accept anything less than that." He took a swig of beer. "So for the time being, I'm going settle for my less attractive hook ups."

She laughed. "I mean, having all of that sex must be pretty fun. I haven't had sex in two weeks and I'm already crawling out of my skin."

He shook his head. "Uh-uh, it's _not _fun." He chugged back some beer. "God, I've slept with so many people."

_Can't say that's too surprising. _"I'm sure it's not that many."

He raised an eyebrow. "Does fifteen sound like a lot to you?"

"You've slept with fifteen people?!"

"Hey, it didn't mean anything! It was glorified masturbation!" He groaned. He was so drunk that his words were slurring. He leaned in, and took her hand. "You're the only cool girl here that I've met so far. So many of the girls here, it's just like, 'ugh, I don't want to talk to you.' But you're not like that. You're a friend, so what I need to tell you, and what I'm going to ask you—" he burped, "—is going to be asked and told as a _friend,_ okay?"

"Okay," she said softly.

_Dear God is he drunk._

"Because the truth is, I think you're beautiful. And you're cool—actually, you're the kind of girl that I'm going to marry one day. And your boyfriend . . . well, as far as I'm concerned, he's the luckiest guy in the world."

_Jesus. Drunk Cato is really intense. _

"And I really, _really _want to hook up with you, like it's all I want in the world right now. But I'm fighting it really hard because you're really in love with this Marvel kid. And you're my friend, and if I fuck that up for you then I'm never going to forgive myself."

"Aww, Cato—"

"I just need to make sure of something, okay?" he continued. He looked her dead in the eye. "Do you love him?"

"Yes."

"What do you love about him?"

_Way to put me on the spot._ "I love that he's everything I'm not," she sighed. "I'm crazy and high strung. And I love that about myself, but I need someone who's laid back. And he's also smart, he's _so _fucking smart—have you ever seen _Good Will Hunting?"_

"No."

"Well, watch it. It's an amazing movie." She knocked back some more beer. "And not shitting you, he's like Matt Damon from _Good Will Hunting._ And I don't think I've ever been more attracted to anyone in my life."

"Okay," Cato said slowly. "Okay." He cleared his throat. "Do you think the distance is worth it?"

These were awfully personal questions, but she didn't care. Glimmer had always been an open book.

"Honestly, yes."

"Why?"

"Because I think we're going to make it."

"Glimmer." He squeezed her hand. "This is very important, okay? I just need to know—are you thinking of transferring?"

"Actually, yes," she breathed.

He nodded, slowly. "Okay. Okay. Okay." And then he shook his head. "No, Glimmer, you can't do that. Not unless you think you're going to marry him, or something like that . . ." he trailed off, noticing the look on her face. "You do, don't you?"

"Maybe," she said quietly. She laughed, squeezed Cato's hands and then let go of them. "I don't know what's going to happen, Cato. All I know is that if I still feel this way about Marvel in a year, I'm moving to Boston. And, yeah, I could see us getting married one day. Not anytime soon, but one day."

"Then you know what, Glimmer?" Cato put his hands on her shoulders, as if to scold a child. "If you really love this kid, and if you don't transfer, I'm never going to forgive you for it. You want to know why? Because you're going to regret it for the rest of your life if you don't take that leap."

"Thank you Cato," she said.

"I mean it. But you've gotta be one-hundred percent. It has to be _him,_ not even ninety-nine percent. One-hundred percent, you hear me?"

"I got it," she nodded. "One-hundred percent."

"Good," he smiled. He leaned back, and cracked his knuckles. Glimmer laughed, the conversation already replaying in her head. _You're just full of surprises, aren't you Ludwig?_ she mused.

"Do you want another beer?" she asked.

He checked his watched. "It's, what, four in the morning? I _need_ one."

* * *

_**. . . I'm feeling better ever since you know me**_

_**I was a lonely soul but that's the old me . . .**_

* * *

**A/N: Daaaaaaaamn, drunk Cato gets **_**honest.**_

**I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and that y'all are having a wonderful Christmas break! Let me know what you thought :D**

**Song lyrics are from OneRepublic's "Feel Again."**

**xx Nina**


	5. Yes, This Fear's Got A Hold On Me

**To Austin, With Love**

By Ninazadzia

* * *

She made some mistakes, of course.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_ There's something to be said about putting yourself out there, and putting yourself in a vulnerable position. That's literally been the entirety of my relationship with Marvel so far—me putting myself in a very vulnerable position. All I can do is hope that it's worth it in at least some respect, because right now, I've never been so scared in my entire life._

_ I'm scared that I'm his Peter, and that he's more in love with the idea of love than he is with me. I'm scared that he loves me, but that he's not in love with me. I'm scared that I'm in for months of forgotten anniversaries and birthdays, but if I'm being honest, what scares me the most is that I've already screwed it up. That the last few drunk FaceTimes of me putting him _completely _on the spot of have freaked him out and have made him think that I'm obsessive, clingy, and insecure._

_When he said that he loved me, I was in disbelief. When I went to visit him in Massachusetts two weeks later, and when he brought up me transferring to BC, I was in disbelief. And when we had the best sex of my life in Martha's Vineyard … well, I loved him so much at that point that it didn't even surprise me. If sex with someone who cares about you (i.e. Peter) is good, then sex with someone who you're in love with is amazing. _

_Except now, I'm worried that I screwed it up. I'm worried that I took him way out of his comfort zone, that I put him on the spot, or that I made him realize that, no, he actually isn't really in love with me. I've got all of these insecurities, and I don't know what to do about them because I'm never like this—only when it comes to him._

_Now to take a step back and put things in perspective—I'm going to be okay. I have a lot of things going or me right now, the least of which is my relationship. I'm at a great school, I'm making a lot of friends, I'm getting super involved in clubs, I'm training for my first marathon—I'm going to be just fine._

* * *

"You know what I decided?"

"What?"

"I need to get wifed up," Cato announced.

Glimmer laughed. The two of them had just gotten out of English. They were walking to lunch, and the conversation had turned from tales of their weekends to their respective romantic issues.

"Oh, man. I'd like to see that."

He shrugged. "You and Madge Undersee are friends, right?"

"Yeah, we're in the same Art History class." She smirked at him. "Way to hook up with her. She told me all about that."

"Really? What'd she say?"

"Nothing really, just that it was good." _And that you sleep around a lot._

He snorted. "She's a virgin, isn't she?"

"I don't know."

"Well, I can tell you—she's a virgin. She's super tight." He laughed. "Fuck, guess that's just a testament of how much I get around, huh?"

Glimmer sighed. "You're gross." They swiped their meal cards, and stood in line at the stir-fry station. "So you're thinking of asking Madge out?"

"Not originally. I was actually after this other girl named Lizzie—that didn't work out though."

"Aw. What happened?"

"She's a bitch, that's what." He rolled his eyes. "Pretty much just used me for free drinks. Doesn't have any real interest."

"I'm sorry to hear it."

"Yeah, well. That's kind of the story of my life."

The two of them handed their plates to the cook, and it was returned piled high with food that barely looked edible. _You think they'd have better sustenance here. _Glimmer had always been a bit of a picky eater; she could thank a crippling dairy allergy and her mother's delicious cooking for that.

The two of them sat down, and ate what they could. All the while, Cato enlightened Glimmer on his unlucky romantic history. "Girls like to use me," he explained. "It's like, I'm really friendly, I try to be the good guy, and I do all of the right stuff, and then they just drop me. I don't get it." I took a huge gulp of water, and then set it down and said, "you know what I think it is? All girls are evil."

She raised an eyebrow, and then burst out laughing. "That's a bit of a conundrum, isn't it?"

"Huh?"

"Saying stuff like 'all girls are evil' is a little sexist, especially for someone who claims to be such a 'good guy.'" She shoved some fried rice into her mouth. "And I think half of it is the kind of girls you go for."

He snorted. "What do _you _know about the kind of girls I go after?"

"You told me just last weekend that you won't settle for anything less than a ten." She shook her head. "Sounds like you're focusing too much on the superficial."

"I mean, I'm not going to go for someone that I'm not attracted to."

"Yeah, but you'd be surprised—there are some really, _really _nice girls here that you might not be extremely attracted to at first, but once you get to know them, they're really pretty. They're just not the stereotypical 'oh-hey-look-at-me-I'm-a-ten' pretty."

He laughed. "The problem with that theory is that what most girls consider to be tens, guys consider sevens at _most."_

"_Cato!"_

"What?! I'm just saying!"

"Ugh." She buried her face into the palm of her hand. "You're impossible."

He laughed. "So. How are things going with Marvel?"

She shifted her weight. She'd contemplated not confiding in Cato, but he'd always been so open with her. Plus, it would've been nice to get a male opinion on her situation with Marvel—even if said male opinion came from someone who was nothing like Marvel.

"I think I fucked up."

He snorted. "Bullshit."

"No, really." She sighed. She explained everything to Cato; how she'd been incredibly drunk at the bars one night, and how whenever she got drunk and wasn't around Marvel, she always reached a point during the night when she just wanted to be with him. So she FaceTimed him, and like the blabbermouth she was, she brought up transferring, their future, and _(God_) the "M" word.

Cato listened to her, nodding his head every once in a while. Once she finished her story, he asked, "And he's been weird since?"

"Yeah. I barely hear from him. It takes him two hours to respond to my texts, they're super dismissive, and I'm always the one who reaches out to him." She sighed. "Man, I'm telling you. I like this kid so much more than he likes me. It's pathetic."

Cato looked at her for a minute, and then went, "Wow, that's going to end badly for you!" She stared at him in disbelief, but he continued. "He's going to break up with you, isn't he?" She was about to start shooting him daggers, but he didn't shut up. "Then you're gonna be_ devastated_, then you're gonna _kill _him, and then you're gonna end up on the _news,_ and then I'm gonna be like, 'hey! I know her!'" Cato had this childlike grin stretched across his face. "Doesn't that make you feel _so _much better?" he asked.

She stared at him for a minute, and tried to contain the oncoming fit of laughter. "You're the only nice asshole I've ever met," she decided.

Without skipping a beat he replied, "So I'm a bleached asshole?"

The two of them burst into hysterics, to a point where fried rice was coming out of their noses. They calmed down a minute or two later, at which point Cato said, "I mean, it doesn't sound like you did anything wrong. Maybe you just freaked him out a little. Do you remember anything that you said?"

She shook her head. "Not really." She groaned. "Wait. Actually, I do—I might've said something like 'I'm worried that I'm your Peter, and that I like you more than you like me.'" And then it hit her. "_God. _Fuck, actually, I might've told him that I wanted to marry him. And maybe even have his children." She ran a hand through her hair, and clutched onto her scalp.

"Sounds intense."

"I'm an idiot."

"Okay, well. If it were me, I would've been a little weirded out, not gonna lie." Glimmer managed a feeble laugh. "_But_ you still didn't do anything wrong. And if he keeps being like this, you need to have a serious talk with him."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Actually, just send him my way." A crooked smile stretched across his face. "Tell him I'll fuck him up if he keeps being a dick to you."

She laughed. "Yeah. Like the fifth string quarterback could whoop his ass."

"Oh, I absolutely could."

* * *

… _**Floating neither up or down**_

_**I wonder when I'll hit the ground**_

_**Will the earth beneath my body shake**_

_**And cast your sleeping hearts awake**_

_**Could it tremble stars from moonlit skies**_

_**Could it drag a tear from your cold eyes**_

_**I live on the right side, I sleep in the left**_

_**That's why everything's got to be love or death**_

_**Yes, this fear's got a hold on me…**_

* * *

**A/N: MERRY CHRISTMAS Y'ALL!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think about the rift in Glimmer and Marvel's relationship, as well as Glimmer and Cato's blossoming friendship.**

**Hope you guys are having a good one!**

**xx Nina**

**Lyrics are from (ONE OF MY FAVORITE SONGS IN THE WHOLE HISTORY OF TIME AND SPACE) "Death" by White Lies.**


	6. Blame It On The Night

**To Austin, With Love**

By Ninazadzia

* * *

Madge and Glimmer were in the same Art History class, so Glimmer was in the perfect position to pull the strings behind that relationship. She spent a full week talking him up to Madge ("He's a really sweet guy, he's been there for me whenever I've needed him," "That kid cracks me up,") although she had a hard time reading Madge's reactions. It wasn't until she bumped into her on her way home from a frat party that she got the full scoop.

"Yeah, we hooked up. It went pretty far, actually," she explained. She giggled. "Wait, I already told you that, didn't I? Ugh, God, I must sound so stupid—I'm sorry, I'm just really drunk."

Glimmer's buzz had _long _worn off at that point, so she didn't have any issue mediating the conversation. "Oh, _no _judgment at all girl—and you're the furthest thing from stupid."

"Glim, I love you. You're, like, seriously one of the nicest people I've met here. And you're gorgeous."

_Coming from an absolutely stunning, southern California blonde. _"Stop. You're amazing. I'm so happy I met you."

Drunken hugging ensued, and then Madge pulled away and continued her jabbering. "But yeah, I don't know—I feel kind of weird about doing stuff when it's _that _casual."

_Perfect. _"For real?"

"Yeah." She giggled. "I've never had sex, you know? There's actually a guy at home that I'm thinking of banging, just because I know him really well. I mean, if it's going to be my first time, it might as well be with someone special."

_Alright. That complicates things a bit._

"Yeah, I totally get what you're saying," Glimmer said. Sweat glistened on Madge's face in the September heat, and Glimmer could practically feel the beads of sweat as they rolled down her neck. "Like, I've had both meaningful and causal sex. And honestly, after being with Marvel I don't think I could ever go back to casual shit." She pulled Madge in for a hug. "You hang in there, okay girl? I'm sure that no matter what the circumstances are, you're going to have a great first time."

"Ugh, I love you. Seriously, Glimmer, you're the best."

"I love you too Madge. Now, let's get you home."

* * *

She really tried to set up Madge and Cato—and it succeeded, at least immediately.

The weeks wore on, and what were once occasional post-English lunches had now become routine. Cato and Glimmer would occasionally grab lunch with Peeta Mellark, a mutual friend of theirs from class, but normally he dined with his pledge brothers. They talked over sweet potatoes and lukewarm chicken legs the Wednesday after Madge and Glimmer had run into each other.

"She wants someone nice right now," she explained. "So you're going to have to be the nice guy. Take her out on a date, kiss her but don't sleep with her, and under _no circumstances_ are you allowed to hookup with anyone else."

"Alright, alright."

"I mean it. Keep it in your pants, Cato."

"Jeez, I know how not be a manslut every once in a while."

"And I expect a play by play of how your date goes!"

He laughed. "You'll get the full details."

She got the rundown, alright. It just wasn't the rundown either of them wanted to hear.

The first text she got from him was at 8:50, and it read, "_I think it went well."_

_ "Really? That's amazing!"_

_ "Yeah. We're headed out to the bars now."_

And then, less than an hour later, she received one that said, _"I'm never going on a date again."_

_ "Aww : ( what happened?"_

He didn't reply. So Glimmer put it out of her mind, pumped more alcohol into her system, and headed out to the bars with her friends. She was in line at one of them when she ran into a certain scruffy blonde quarterback.

"Glimmerrrrr!"

He ran over and practically barreled her down with a hug. "Cato!" She exclaimed. It was a bone crushing embrace, and in between how much he was stumbling and how much his breath reeked of liquor, she could tell that he was drunk off of his ass.

"I never heard back from you—how's your night going? You doing okay?"

"Doing a _ton_ better now," he said, grinning. "I'm going hog hunting tonight!"

She stared at him. "What?"

"Hog hunting! I'm getting laid with as many hogs as I can tonight! I've already made out with five, gotten it in with two—and I need is to fuck one more and it's a _turkey." _He burst into a fit of laughter, but Glimmer searched his expression. There was hurt behind his eyes, and she could tell.

"What happened with Madge?" she demanded.

"She hooked up with some other guy! And it literally happened, like, an hour after dinner."

She stared at him in disbelief. "And she was with you?"

"Yeah! At the bar. It's pretty fucked up. But hey, you know what that means?" He pounded his chest. "Manslut Cato is _back, _motherfuckerrrrrs! And he is _hog hunting."_

"Cato—"

"_Look out ladies, I'm gonna fuck your brains out tonight!"_

Glimmer rolled her eyes. At this point her friends were at the front of the line to get into the bar. She had to move, and quickly.

"Are you with people?" She asked him.

"Yeah, why?"

"I just wanted to make sure that you're safe."

"Psch, don't _worry _about me, Glimmer—I'm great. _Seriously._"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, _mom._ Go have fun with your friends."

"Okay." She pulled him in for a hug. He squeezed her tightly, and let her go. Just before she walked away, he grabbed her hand.

"Be careful tonight," he said, still grinning from ear to ear. "You look really hot."

She laughed. "Thanks, Cato.

* * *

"_**Can't you see it?**_

_**I was manipulated**_

_**I had to let her through the door**_

_**I had no choice in this**_

_**I was a friend she missed**_

_**She needed me to talk…"**_

* * *

**A/N: Happy New Year lovelies! Sorry this chapter was on the short side—it's pivotal for the plot, and I hope you guys enjoyed! If this fic has too much Glato for your taste, I just posted a Clato one-shot ("With or Without you") that you should check out. *eyebrow wiggle***

**Song lyrics are from John Newman and Calvin Harris' "Blame."**

**Love y'all!**

**xx Nina**


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